Ep. 8: Red Hairing

We head back over to Lindsay, who’s still living with Marky and Ma Bark on their ostrich farm. Coincidentally, it’s also located next to George Sr.’s sweat colony. Another puzzle piece in place as we learn that it was Marky who dressed up as an ostrich and pretended to be George & Oscar’s vision while they were high on macca. Upon learning that she missed Lucille’s trial and that the Barks were being kicked off their land, Lindsay, Marky, and Cindy the ostrich decide to “occupy” Lucille’s now empty penthouse. We fast forward to one year later and see the now-trashed penthouse. Marky is planning on blue-ink-and-glitter bombing Herbert Love’s speech at his event, only he can’t find the silver glitter. Lindsay used it to make a “I’m for LUCILLE 2 4 Congres” sign on the back of the “You’re killing me, Buster” sign. Speaking of Lucille 2, Lindsay has been secretly hanging out with her mother’s rival in her penthouse and receiving gifts such as red wigs and ice cream cake.

After finding Lucille’s check to Maeby for plastic surgery, Lindsay pays Prisoner 07734 a visit at her luxurious incarceration center. Mama B. informs Lindsay that even if they’re not biologically related, “the apple does not far from the tree fall.” This spurs Lindsay to go along with Marky’s plan to bomb Love’s speech. While wearing the red wig at the fundraiser, Lindsay runs into both George Sr. (we saw that scene before) and Maeby, who confides to her mother that she’s there “to receive a lifetime achievement award for her work in the entertainment business.” The two part ways. Lindsay heads to the bar, where she flirts with Herbert Love without having any idea who he actually is. Suddenly, there’s an explosion and Lindsay realizes that she never let Marky out of the podium. As a result, the bomb went off with Marky still in its path and he’s now a big blue mess. “Oh no,” Lindsay groans. “He blue himself.” “Well, you certainly have a type,” Maeby tells her after breaking the news that she’s been flirting with Herbert Love himself. Lindsay returns to the penthouse to find an eviction notice thanks to Cindy the Ovulating Ostrich. As she sips stolen vodka out of her purse, an unknowing Michael passes her as he gets off the elevator and we’re in the final scene in the first episode.

More puzzle pieces fall into place – At the model home, Lindsay notices the police tape. Maeby alludes to Tobias having already been arrested. This is confirmed in a scene between Marky & Lindsay at the prison, when “Anus Tart” is called out in the background. Marky reveals that he couldn’t escape from the podium on his own because someone (G.O.B. in the previous episode) had jammed the door closed so he couldn’t open it. Pushing ahead in the plot, Michael runs into Lindsay and Herbert Love asks his sister to get her new lover “against the wall,” which will fulfill his promise to George Sr. She does this, only it’s not quite the same “against the wall” that her brother meant. Meanwhile, Michael is supposed to meet GM at the Ealing Club for lunch, only he is denied entry and has to make up a lie to stall. Sadly, GM also lies to his devastated father.

Lindsay makes a reservation under the family name and takes Love out to dinner at the Balboa Club, but Michael and Rebel have already beaten her to the punch. After a hilariously awkward dinner conversation between the conservative Love, liberal Alley, and clueless Lindsay, both brother and sister are left alone at the table. A lonely and confused Lindsay runs into a now freed Marky, who tells her about his new plan to glitter bomb a ship at the Cinco festival. Lindsay attempts to warn Love of the bombing, but is instead offered “a severance package for servicing my package.” While strolling along the docks, Lindsay sees a disguised Marky board a motorboat with her suitcase in hand (presumably carrying the bomb). Rather than join him, she keeps walking and runs into Lucille, who for some unknown reason, is wearing a costume that looks like the Wicked Queen’s outfit. Lucille tells Lindsay that at the end of the day, she is still a Bluth. Lindsay discards the wig in the trash. She offers her services as campaign manager to Lucille 2, only to find that she’d lost out on the position to her longtime rival, Sally Sitwell. Sally reveals to Lindsay that they have compromising pictures of Love and his redheaded prostitute. She runs into Love’s campaign manager who tells her that Love has suddenly gone missing and someone needs to make a speech in his place. Determined to get the one-up on both Lucille 2 and Love, Lindsay gets up on the podium and inadvertently gets the crowd riled up with chants of “Put up this wall!” The rioting starts, we see George Sr. throw on the red wig, and learn that Love was found unconscious behind the kick-a-goat booth and is now in a coma.

I liked this episode much better on second viewing, but it still feels a little bit long to me. I was delighted to see the blue paint pop up again as well as tickled at the name Lindsay used as her alias: Cindy Featherbottom (combining Cindy the ostrich and Tobias’ alter ego from season 2).

Things to Note:

Lindsay sighs, “I’d give $20,000 for a lemonade right now.” and then later asks “Who keeps numbing these animals?” The former is a nod to George Sr.’s scam while the latter references Dr. Norman’s “thinking cap.”

Lucille again pokes fun at Lindsay’s inability to fake cry.

Maeby’s line about Lindsay having a type is the same thing that Michael said to Buster in Season 3.

There’s a “No touching!” during the prison scene when Marky hugs Lindsay which is a play on the “No hugging” replacing “No touching” in the earlier episodes.